Cali residents share your in state woes!

[droshan]

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Yes being a doctor/getting into anything is the most important goal of this process BUT I love Cali (as I know most of you cali residents do too) and I would be ecstatic if I could stay here. After looking at a lot of MDapps I can't seem to make sense of the UCs preference. I've seen candidates with high MCAT/high GPAs getting rejected from UCI and people like me with a lot of interviews out of state without a single shot at a UC. I've also noticed that some candidates that have one UC interview tend to have several UC interviews whereas someone with similar stats will have none. I may way off mark here but it almost seems like the UCs in general are looking for a very particular type of candidate (ECs, goals, and experiences) within an obvious GPA/MCAT range.

My point isn't to b*tch but to state my opinion that the "competiveness" of the UCs has a lot more to do w/ their pickyness for fit then it does for numbers. What do you guys think?

 

[efitzpat]

First, this is a wonderful idea. Second, ARG!!!!! Assuming USC works out for me, my choices are 1. lots of debt 2. freezing cold or 3. hurricanes. None of those are appealing!

I am SO thankful that I am getting a shot at becoming a doctor, but why can't someone give me a chance at becoming a doctor, staying in California, and paying in state tuition? Is that too much to ask?

Edit (forgot to talk about UC "competitiveness"): I have no idea what the UCs are looking for and I don't think they do a good job of articulating it to their applicants. While UCSD has been VERY nice to me and given me a lot of feedback, others are not helpful at all. It seems to me that they are looking for a VERY specific type of student, so extremely qualified applicants are getting rejected. I'm not saying I'm one of those by any means - the UCs are a definite reach for me, but it is so hard to understand how they work.

 

[silverhorse84]

I have no idea!

I've had one UC interview, although I didn't apply to all of them. I truly did not expect to have any sort of a shot at staying in California! I had it set in my mind that I'd be leaving the state, because I didn't think I was competitive enough. I guess I'm no where near thinking similarly to adcom members - well, at two of the schools I applied to anyway 😛

 

[droshan]

I can't believe you didn't even get a secondary from UCI efitz, that is ridiculous! I'd go for the huge debt at USC if I were you! I'm dying to go there.

 

[DrMattOglesby]

I applied to:
-UC Irvine [rejected post-secondary]
-UC Davis [no news]
-UC San Diego [rejected pre-secondary]

I really didn't think I'd have a shot at the UC schools anyway.

 

[csmittyB]

I've managed to get unilaterally rejected from every California med school I applied to. For me, the best rejection letter came from the UCD email I received. It was a very polite email which made clear that there were many qualified applicants this year (which I can infer I was not one). However the best part was when they misspelled the word with as Wiith. Not only am I not qualified enough to go to their med school, but apparently I'm such a bad applicant that I'm not qualified to attend a med school that cannot spell a four letter word correctly. I'm through ranting. I hope other people have better luck.

 

[honker]

The OP has asked a question that has been asked annually for the last 35 years, at least. The only consistent pattern for UC adcoms has been to somewhat favor URMs and people with "stories". If you want to know the scope of the difficulty of getting into UC med schools, talk to resident program physicians and find out where they went to undergrad and med school. You will find a lot of docs who are originally from Cali and ended up at OOS med schools before coming back home.

 

[Slack3r]

Well, f*** me running. I've got lower stats than most of the people in here. This is disheartening. 🙁

 

[Surferboy]

It would be a miracle if I could stay in Cali. Seeing these well-qualified people get rejected/not even get a secondary makes me even less hopeful.

29Q, 3.62

UCLA- rejected post secondary
UCSD- rejected pre-secondary
UCD- Complete...waiting
UCI- Complete...waiting
UCSF- Complete...waiting

 

[DaiCa86]

I think UCI interviews really really top candidates and only candidates they think will come to their school if given an acceptance. I think the middle group is screwed, but that's my opinion and what I've seen with ppl applying. Anyways I love socal! It's like summertime right now in SD 😎

 

[strongboy2005]

Believe me, I know what you mean...

So far my luck with the UC schools has been disheartening:

UCSD - no news since primary app
UCI, UCLA, UCSD - rejected pre-secondary
UCD - complete in late September, no news

The only hope I really have for the UC schools is UC Davis, but I am becoming wearier by the day.

(BTW I have a 3.92 GPA and a 32 MCAT)

 

[Siverhideo1985]

UC Davis is my only shot at Cali anymore, but I hear they started interviewing really late, too.

Rejected: UCI, USC

We'll see...I am keeping my fingers crossed but my hopes to a minimum.

Best of Luck to everyone!

 

[Arpan5145]

UCI - rejected
UCSF - rejected
UCLA - rejected
UCD - no news
UCSD - pre-interview hold
USC - no news

🙁 i <3 california 🙁

 

[usermike8500]

UCI - "pending review" for 6 months
UCSD - pre-interview hold
USC - secondary complete, no news
UCLA - secondary complete, no news
Davis - secondary complete, no news

I thought I had a fairly good shot at CA schools so I didn't apply to any out of state "safety schools." Now it looks like I'm in trouble.

 

[DaiCa86]

Believe me, I know what you mean...

So far my luck with the UC schools has been disheartening:

UCSD - no news since primary app
UCI, UCLA, UCSD - rejected pre-secondary
UCD - complete in late September, no news

The only hope I really have for the UC schools is UC Davis, but I am becoming wearier by the day.

(BTW I have a 3.92 GPA and a 32 MCAT)

O woa, we have the same stats kinda. 3.96gpa and 30mcat. I guess our ECs seperate us.

UCSD- Accepted
UCSF and UCI- Rejected post secondary
UCD and UCLA- Interviewed and waiting

 

[Excelsius]

O woa, we have the same stats kinda. 3.96gpa and 30mcat. I guess our ECs seperate us.

UCSD- Accepted
UCSF and UCI- Rejected post secondary
UCD and UCLA- Interviewed and waiting

Actually, I would think it is NOT the ECs. It raises the "CSU" issue again. 3.92 GPA is very high. 32 MCAT is above average too. I have seen a few other unsuccessful candidates post here, all from CSUs. Anecdotal evidence doesn't count much, but the only way to quantify the problem is to gather admissions data for non-URM CSU students over an entire application cycle (or several).

 

[calimed214]

UCSD - no news pre-secondary (aka: rejection)
USC - rejected.. this is the one school I actually thought I had the best shot at getting into... especially since they have about $160k of my money.. I'm no longer a Trojan fan.
UCLA - deafening silence.. I guess being an alumni doesn't mean much. 😛
UCD - more deafening silence besides an email telling me to stop sending update letters
UCI - interviewed -- should find out results in a week or two -- pleeaaaaaasseee let me inn!!! I'm sorry I ever made fun of anteaters!!

 

[DaiCa86]

Actually, I would think it is NOT the ECs. It raises the "CSU" issue again. 3.92 GPA is very high. 32 MCAT is above average too. I have seen a few other unsuccessful candidates post here, all from CSUs. Anecdotal evidence doesn't count much, but the only way to quantify the problem is to gather admissions data for non-URM CSU students over an entire application cycle (or several).

O yea that's true. I didn't see that he went to state. I think that's a major diff. I know UCSD SOM interviews a lot of ppl from UCLA, UCSD, and Cal.

 

[strongboy2005]

O yea that's true. I didn't see that he went to state. I think that's a major diff. I know UCSD SOM interviews a lot of ppl from UCLA, UCSD, and Cal.

Really? I always thought it didn't make that big of a difference. And even if there was a bit of a difference, the MCAT acts as one great equalizer. I wouldn't think my school should make that big of a difference (which would essentially make my GPA not as important) when I still perform well on the MCAT. My performance (and I know several pre-meds from CSUF who did better on the MCAT than I did) indicates the education is up to par.

If it truly is a CSU bias, then that is pretty ridiculous.

BTW, what school did you go to?

 

[thegetupkid]

rejected post-secondary (i.e. post-payment) to UCSF ... damn

 

[DaiCa86]

Really? I always thought it didn't make that big of a difference. And even if there was a bit of a difference, the MCAT acts as one great equalizer. I wouldn't think my school should make that big of a difference (which would essentially make my GPA not as important) when I still perform well on the MCAT. My performance (and I know several pre-meds from CSUF who did better on the MCAT than I did) indicates the education is up to par.

If it truly is a CSU bias, then that is pretty ridiculous.

BTW, what school did you go to?

UCSD- It has a bad rep of having competitive students, which I've seen to be somewhat true. It just depends on what crowd you hang with. I think I'm starting to rant, so I'll stop lol.

 

[enjoydrywax]

Whoever said the UCs value "stories" is totally correct. Not only am I an ORM (Asian), but I have pretty solid stats (39, 3.9). I have 2 in-state friends who are also asian with very similar numbers who have had NO love from the UCs and I can tell you the only difference between them and I is that I framed my app with a story, whereas they just tossed together a few reasons why they felt they wanted to enter medicine. Now I can definitely say that I am in no way more qualified nor have more interest in pursuing this career than they do, but it seems like my "story" has really helped in terms of getting interviews IN CALIFORNIA. As for other schools, they are interviewing all over the country, just not within their home state.

Also one thing I noticed that I have, which they don't, is that all my ECs have a common theme running through them. It's not just research in one field, volunteering in some arbitrary hospital ward, and shadowing some unrelated physician. Perhaps this also falls within the "stories" category. Point is I think I put a lot of effort into making a cohesive package, as opposed to a lot of little different/unrelated things. Hope this helps.

I do however share your guys' woes.. I feel like I have had to work so much harder just to get a chance to attend my OWN state's schools, which are supposedly there to help me (a california resident) out. A portion of my taxes end up there so you would think they'd be somewhat transparent as to what they require to gain admission. It's so frustrating to know that you can't stay close to home because you are not one of the most competitive premedical students in the country. Bull**** I say.

Oh another rant: **** the state budget and the impending doom it will release upon tuition within the next 2-4 years. Going to a california school used to be a deal; now it's almost no different than going to some privates (Baylor, etc).

 

[CalBear2009]

You guys are making me scared. I would give anything to stay in cali and catch a few cal games in the fall. I guess I just need to enjoy my time here this next year while I am waiting on my apps.

EDIT:

Maybe some people can tell us about thier "stories" to hear what is successful in the UC apps.

 

[efitzpat]

I thought a had a "story", but I guess it wasn't good enough. I especially put a lot of time into my UCSD autobiography.

I'd rather they just send me a rejection instead of keeping my hopes up. UCSD and UCD just need to end my misery NOW.

 

[Black Surgeon]

Yes being a doctor/getting into anything is the most important goal of this process BUT I love Cali (as I know most of you cali residents do too) and I would be ecstatic if I could stay here. After looking at a lot of MDapps I can't seem to make sense of the UCs preference. I've seen candidates with high MCAT/high GPAs getting rejected from UCI and people like me with a lot of interviews out of state without a single shot at a UC. I've also noticed that some candidates that have one UC interview tend to have several UC interviews whereas someone with similar stats will have none. I may way off mark here but it almost seems like the UCs in general are looking for a very particular type of candidate (ECs, goals, and experiences) within an obvious GPA/MCAT range.

My point isn't to b*tch but to state my opinion that the "competiveness" of the UCs has a lot more to do w/ their pickyness for fit then it does for numbers. What do you guys think?

This thread reminds me of those Texas adoring residents threads who cant quite get into their head that texas isn't a country and that their whole state needs to stop raising their state flag as high as the American flag.

Listen, everything you said above about the unpredictability of UC schools can be said for every single Medical school in the country. Every school has "a pickiness for fit" and UC schools are in no way exceptional in this regard.

 

[silverlining1]

I applied last year and noticed the same weirdness (check my MDapps too):

UCSF: high priority waitlist -> waitlist
UCLA: post-secondary rejection
UCSD: accepted
UCI: post-secondary rejection
UCD: waitlist

I was especially mystified by making it to the waitlist at UCSF and not even getting an interview at UCI. My friends have postulated 2 possibilities: 1) I didn't have a ton of clinical experience, which may be highly valued at UCI and 2) UCI didn't think I would go if accepted. I have no idea what the truth is... or if I just got unlucky. Sigh.

I totally agree that having a cohesive story to your application is a huge benefit, but apply broadly because the luck of the draw is definitely a factor as well!

 

[tiamat360]

Not to derail, but do rejections from UCSF appear on the status page?

 

[Surferboy]

The OP has asked a question that has been asked annually for the last 35 years, at least. The only consistent pattern for UC adcoms has been to somewhat favor URMs and people with "stories". If you want to know the scope of the difficulty of getting into UC med schools, talk to resident program physicians and find out where they went to undergrad and med school. You will find a lot of docs who are originally from Cali and ended up at OOS med schools before coming back home.

I've heard the "stories" angle before and definitely believe in it after looking at my friends who have applied. While I wish I had higher stats anyday (like you guys), I think my story is interesting enough that it might catch the eye of admission committees. But I'm guessing that in the end the lack of stats will result in rejections for this year.

Argh

 

[BarefootinDC]

I also hail from California and feel your pain about the lack of in-state love.

UCSF- rejected post-secondary
UCLA- no news post-secondary
UCI- rejected post-secondary
UCD- interviewing soon
UCSD- no news.... ever
USC- just interviewed

... and Loma Linda's secondary just freaked me out.

I've been living in the northeast too long- I'm ready to be warm again!

 

[enjoydrywax]

This thread reminds me of those Texas adoring residents threads who cant quite get into their head that texas isn't a country and that their whole state needs to stop raising their state flag as high as the American flag.

Listen, everything you said above about the unpredictability of UC schools can be said for every single Medical school in the country. Every school has "a pickiness for fit" and UC schools are in no way exceptional in this regard.

I am sure there exists no combination of words that I could lay down in this post that would convince you otherwise so I will just leave you with if you were from california you would understand. Now please return to your Maryland thread.. oh wait.

 

[droshan]

UCSF: pre-interview rejection
UCI: pending review since August
UCD: no news since secondary
UCSD: on hold
UCLA: no news since secondary
USC: no news since secondary

😕 This sucks

 

[droshan]

I am sure there exists no combination of words that I could lay down in this post that would convince you otherwise so I will just leave you with if you were from california you would understand. Now please return to your Maryland thread.. oh wait.

👍 Well said and thank you.

 

[Black Surgeon]

I am sure there exists no combination of words that I could lay down in this post that would convince you otherwise so I will just leave you with if you were from california you would understand. Now please return to your Maryland thread.. oh wait.

You cali guys are mean :cry:. Just wait, one of these days Marylandians will take over SDN.

 

[DaiCa86]

You cali guys are mean :cry:. Just wait, one of these days Marylandians will take over SDN.

LOL. We're just products of the game.

 

[RySerr21]

I applied last year and noticed the same weirdness (check my MDapps too):

UCSF: high priority waitlist -> waitlist
UCLA: post-secondary rejection
UCSD: accepted
UCI: post-secondary rejection
UCD: waitlist

I was especially mystified by making it to the waitlist at UCSF and not even getting an interview at UCI. My friends have postulated 2 possibilities: 1) I didn't have a ton of clinical experience, which may be highly valued at UCI and 2) UCI didn't think I would go if accepted. I have no idea what the truth is... or if I just got unlucky. Sigh.

I totally agree that having a cohesive story to your application is a huge benefit, but apply broadly because the luck of the draw is definitely a factor as well!

i seirously here this story every week..... interveiws/acceptances at schools like SF/SD but pre-interview rejections from Irvine. I think they just look for a very very specific applicant.

 

[Excelsius]

I've heard the "stories" angle before and definitely believe in it after looking at my friends who have applied. While I wish I had higher stats anyday (like you guys), I think my story is interesting enough that it might catch the eye of admission committees. But I'm guessing that in the end the lack of stats will result in rejections for this year.

Argh

I am assuming that by "story" you guys mean that adcoms simply want to see a real human being. I guess overcoming a challenge would be helpful too, but I wouldn't assume that to be a pre-requisite for every applicant. I mean if you have very good numbers, then you'll likely get in. If you have average or low numbers, then a story might help to explain how it has affected your performance (which has to be only in the past since they won't accept you if your "story" is still part of your life). The bottom line is that they are probably seeking some character/experience, especially if you are ORM.

 

[calimed214]

i seirously here this story every week..... interveiws/acceptances at schools like SF/SD but pre-interview rejections from Irvine. I think they just look for a very very specific applicant.

Hmmm.. in my case.. they must be looking for the pathetic, desperate type. 🙂

 

[DrMattOglesby]

I've managed to get unilaterally rejected from every California med school I applied to. For me, the best rejection letter came from the UCD email I received. It was a very polite email which made clear that there were many qualified applicants this year (which I can infer I was not one). However the best part was when they misspelled the word with as Wiith. Not only am I not qualified enough to go to their med school, but apparently I'm such a bad applicant that I'm not qualified to attend a med school that cannot spell a four letter word correctly. I'm through ranting. I hope other people have better luck.

Oh, I wouldnt be so upset with this. I'm positive UC Davis had to make out a TON of rejection notices...and after typing the same stuff over and over and voer and over adn oevr again...there's bound to be a typo 😉

PS: Just for clarification...are we taking into consideration our private MD schools like Stanford, Loma Linda, and USC?
cuz if so, i applied to, and was rejected by, Stanford.

 

[Bradstein]

-UC San Diego [rejected pre-secondary]

Me too. I mean, I was never formally rejected but I'm sure it's long passed the deadline to submit secondary materials, so with no secondary = silent rejection.

I thought I'd get some love from the UCs, but doesn't appear so.

And to think, I was planning on attending a UC and really only applied to other schools as "just in case..."

Listen, everything you said above about the unpredictability of UC schools can be said for every single Medical school in the country. Every school has "a pickiness for fit" and UC schools are in no way exceptional in this regard.

Yeah but there are a lot of states that accept like half of their IS applicants. California has a lot more students than spots. Texas has a LOT of schools and I'm sure that their students:spots ratio is way better than ours.

 

[go lakers]

Applied last cycle:

UCSF: pre-secondary rejection
UCLA: post-secondary rejection
UCSD: waitlisted - withdrew
UCI: accepted
UCD: post-secondary rejection
USC: post-secondary rejection which took forever

I agree that a well-told story can make a difference. There are lots of well-qualified students who get overlooked by UC's.

I know UCI is somewhat systematic about it (5000 apply --> 1900 secondaries --> 500 interviews), but the transition from secondaries to interviews to acceptances is subjective. Showing interest played a role for me.

 

[ButImLETired]

I would like to point out my own stupidity.

There I was, a resident of NJ, a perfectly safe state to be a resident of, and I thought "I would rather be shot in the head than live in Newark or Piscataway" (where the NJ med schools are located), "but I've always wanted to go to UCSF. Let's move to California!".

Well, UCSF took me out of my misery pretty quickly, UCLA only recently, and UCSD invited me to interview just to waitlist me after. Incidentally, I felt that I'd be a "perfect fit" for UCSF. Two rejections, a waitlist, and a sad IOU instead of a state tax refund (thanks CA for being broke) later, I am wondering: what was I thinking?!

 

[WeAreNotRobots]

If it truly is a CSU bias, then that is pretty ridiculous.

someone once told me that csu's are the cc's of four-year institutions.

 

[RySerr21]

Hmmm.. in my case.. they must be looking for the pathetic, desperate type. 🙂

i guess that fits the category described by others as "accepting those that they know/think will attend."

 

[Bradstein]

someone once told me that csu's are the cc's of four-year institutions.

That's pretty funny. I have no idea how true that is, because I think there are a LOT of "easy" schools. Also, CCs are pretty great for classes where the expectations in courses doesn't vary much by institution, such as calculus or gen chem.

 

[JJMrK]

GL guys. Hopefully there are a bunch more interviews that have yet to be granted.

 

[Bradstein]

GL guys. Hopefully there are a bunch more interviews that have yet to be granted.

We can only hope

 

[RySerr21]

someone once told me that csu's are the cc's of four-year institutions.

whatever tho. its cheap, and the name alone isnt going to keep you out of med school if you do the necessary steps to make yourself competitive. I'm sure Flaahless is pretty content with his "cc" education, you know, now that he attends UCSF or whatever that school is called.

 

[Surferboy]

I would like to point out my own stupidity.

There I was, a resident of NJ, a perfectly safe state to be a resident of, and I thought "I would rather be shot in the head than live in Newark or Piscataway" (where the NJ med schools are located), "but I've always wanted to go to UCSF. Let's move to California!".

Well, UCSF took me out of my misery pretty quickly, UCLA only recently, and UCSD invited me to interview just to waitlist me after. Incidentally, I felt that I'd be a "perfect fit" for UCSF. Two rejections, a waitlist, and a sad IOU instead of a state tax refund (thanks CA for being broke) later, I am wondering: what was I thinking?!

That's rough LET. Atleast you had a shot at UCSF, right? Winners lose more than losers. But you got Vandy! So I don't know whether I should still pity you lol. I think I would be a perfect fit for UCSF too. I've been writing "UCSF" in block letters in my notebook since 8th grade. If they gave me an interview I really don't know what I'd do. I'd send them an update letter but my PS already tells them they are my number 1.

 

[ButImLETired]

whatever tho. its cheap, and the name alone isnt going to keep you out of med school if you do the necessary steps to make yourself competitive. I'm sure Flaahless is pretty content with his "cc" education, you know, now that he attends UCSF or whatever that school is called.

Speaking of Flaahless...

last year, he received a full ride at Vandy, which he turned down to go to UCSF. When I was interviewing at Vandy, I met the dean of diversity randomly in the hall (nicest guy ever by the way), who upon hearing that I live in CA, asked me if I would really be willing to relocate, and he mentioned that "last year, there was one particular student from California he had really wanted to go to Vandy, and he'd given him a full tuition scholarship to sway him, but he'd eventually gotten into UCSF and decided to go there instead."

Moral of the story: Flaahless = 😎

 

[RySerr21]

That's rough LET. Atleast you had a shot at UCSF, right? Winners lose more than losers. But you got Vandy! So I don't know whether I should still pity you lol. I think I would be a perfect fit for UCSF too. I've been writing "UCSF" in block letters in my notebook since 8th grade. If they gave me an interview I really don't know what I'd do. I'd send them an update letter but my PS already tells them they are my number 1.

thats gotta be a slap in the face to every other school you applied to!